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Strong Debut for Gladiators

NBC’s remake of “American Gladiators” muscled to a strong start on Sunday. The amateur athletic tournament, based on the early 1990s series, delivered the highest ratings among adults 18 to 49 of any new show this season on any network, matching the debut of “Heroes” in September 2006, Nielsen estimated. In total viewers, however, “American Gladiators” was less impressive, drawing an average of 12 million from 9 to 11 p.m. ABC’s “Cashmere Mafia,” by comparison, which made its debut on Sunday at 10 p.m., attracted 10.7 million viewers but markedly lower ratings in the 18-to-49 set. “Cashmere Mafia” also benefited from a plum time slot following ABC’s “Desperate Housewives” (19.8 million), the only show to outpace “American Gladiators” on the night among adults 18 to 49. ABC, NBC and CBS finished in a virtual tie for first in that demographic over all on Sunday. CBS, buoyed by an overrun of its afternoon football coverage during the 7 p.m. hour that was followed by one of the highest rated editions of “60 Minutes” in recent years (19 million), won the race in total viewers.